To Infiniti & Beyond

Chapter Nine

My dad texted.

Every couple months I'll get the odd text from him. The last two or three have ended in arguments.

My phone now lays at the opposite end of my bed as I sit curled up in a ball hyperventilating.

I miss my dad, but I feel so much more at peace without him in my life.

I don't have to spring up and act busy when I hear his footsteps come up the stairs to avoid an argument.

I don't get called disrespectful when I don't do something he asks the second he asks it.

I don't get yelled at for not cleaning up household messes that weren't mine.

I don't get called lazy for sleeping in on my days off of work.

After taking a couple minutes to calm myself down, I do something I've never done before.

"Can you talk?"

It's 2am and I am just getting home. I picked my brother up and we talked for about four hours before I went to my special spot so I could write in peace for another hour.

He's always offered to be there for me and to not hesitate to reach out when I need something. It wasn't until tonight that I had realized how much he had matured since we last lived together. It's crazy how much a person can change in ... months.

I get ready for bed and drift off instantly from being so emotionally tired.

I wake up to my phone buzzing and click the answer button as I wipe the sleep from my eyes. "Hello?"

"Did I wake you?" Grayson's voice seeps through the phone speakers.

"Yeah, but that's okay." I smile.

"Get up and get ready, I'm coming to pick you up."

"What? Why?"

"Why not? Get ready, you have 30 minutes, I'll text when I'm on my way." With that being said, he hangs up before I can protest.

I wash my face and brush my teeth in desperate attempt to wake myself up quickly. It works.

The outfit I decide on consists of my white air forces, army green cargo pants, and black cropped tank top with a deep v that lets my sternum tattoo poke through.

I get a text that he is on his way. Thankfully my makeup and hair routine don't take much time.

I throw my hair up in a claw clip. My natural waves cascade over the clip. I pull some pieces from the front to frame my face and give them a touch up with my medium sized curling wand.

As for my makeup, I curl my lashes before applying mascara. Then I put a pop of highlighter in the corner of my eye. I lightly fill in the sparse areas of my brows before shaping them with gel.

He lets me know that he's pulling up to my house. I throw on deodorant, a couple quick spritz of perfume, then shove a piece of gum in my mouth before applying chapstick.

I toss my chapstick on my bed as I grab my wallet and phone. I hear him pull up, and as if on cue my phone rings.

"What's on the agenda today?" I happily ask as I slide into the passenger seat and close my door.

"We'll, I need gas first, but after would you want to go walk around town?"

"Sounds good!" I smile at him. He returns the favor before focusing his attention on backing out of my driveway.

On our way to the gas station he lets me shift for him, but he puts his hand over mine on the shift knob. We stay like that for a majority of the drive.

On our way back to town from the gas station we float around the idea of where we should park the car for the afternoon.

We park before I even notice that there was no music playing the whole drive, just us talking and the exhaust notes.

It's mid March and the weather is beautiful, so many nice cars are out. We walk around the parking lot and find a Mark 4 Toyota Supra, multiple corvettes in a variety of colors, a vintage Porsche 911, and a Lamborghini hurrican.

As we leave the parking lot and take a walk around town we don't see much of anything else. There was a modified Audi and a modified BMW, but that was about it.

On our way back to the car, I verbally note the daffodils in the flowerbeds.

"Pick one." Grayson suggests.

"What? No! I'd feel bad."

Without hesitation he picks one, and it's perfect. The yellow is so vibrant, and the petals are so symmetrical.

"Grayson!" I playfully slap him.

He turns me to him and we stop. He brushes my hair out of my face and behind my ear before attempting to place the flower in my hair.

It doesn't work. I lightly laugh at his attempt and he just looks down at me smiling.

He looks at me funny, but in a good funny way. The way I've never seen him look at anyone else we've come across in the past month and a half I've known him.

"Come on, don't you have work this afternoon?" I grab his hand briefly and nudge him along.

"Yeah, but they can wait."

I roll my eyes but smile nonetheless. It's a good thing his dad is the boss.

On the drive back to my house I wish that we didn't have to part ways. Every time spent with him I just get to live in the moment and forget about the outside world. I've never met someone who's given me the luxury to do that until him.

We arrive at my house and he puts his car in park. "Thank you for today, and thank you for the flower."

"No problem, it was fun. I just wish I picked the stem further down."

"That's okay." I smile, something I seem to never stop doing when I'm with him.

"Next time."

It makes me happy that he wants there to be a next time. "Next time," I agree. "Have a good time at work."